Out of home advertising player oOh!media is starting to see signs of life following a difficult few months amidst COVID-19.
Speaking to oOh!’s shareholders during its annual general meeting on Thursday, chief executive Brendon Cook said not only is advertising starting to pick up again, but the crisis also resulted in operational and rental cost savings.
Furthermore, of oOh!’s original ad bookings across April and May that advertising pulled, about 85 per cent of those campaigns have been pushed to the second half of the year.
“Combined with a slowdown in advertising generally, this has resulted in a challenging Q2 for the business. Of our original bookings in April-May that advertisers will no longer run campaigns in Q2, around 85 per cent have been deferred to the second half of the year,” he said.
Cook also said the outdoor media company was already starting to see a “significant uplift in client briefing activity” for June and the third-quarter as coronavirus restrictions start to relax.
He said: “We are starting to see a significant uplift in client briefing activity for late Q2-Q3 as advertisers begin looking for opportunities as movement restrictions are eased further. Indeed, we are already seeing increases in road and retail foot traffic in metropolitan and regional areas.”
Cook flagged oOh! expects to reach the higher end of its $10m-$15m operating expenditure savings target, while the government’s JobKeeper payments will deliver a further $7m a quarter.
Meanwhile, the company is also headed to reach the higher end of its $25m-$35m capital expenditure target.
Cook said transport segments have been hit the hardest. He said oOh!media’s operations at airports and train stations have been hit “significantly”, which resulted in what he called a “challenging” second quarter.
